Love Will All
by Heroism
Summary: The Great Thaw is fading into memory as matters with the Southern Isles are put to rest. Elsa, however, finds new stress in the form of an unexpected attraction. What will become of her queenly responsibilities—what wall will she have to hide behind to put these new feelings in check? Or, perhaps, what if hiding is no longer an option? Elsanna/Angst/Conspiracy
1. Prologue

A crystalline form wisped in from the outside, its features glistening with each stroke of the Sun's incandescence. The minuscule figure flew further into the room with touches of the wind. It found an alteration in its path, however, when the wind found itself supplanted by an alien force. Azure wind caught the icy wanderer, whisking it in the general direction of a blond woman tapping deliberately on her bed railing. Suddenly the snowflake was disintegrated under the powerful finger of Arendelle's elder scion.

"Why," she moaned, "did it have to happen again?"

Metallic pangs had filled her room for a good while, the walls echoing with eerie resonance.

"Anna..."

* * *

><p>"Such a long day," said Elsa, with a feeling of grit, grime and greasiness.<p>

She had rounded the corner of the throne room following the end to a long chain of adjournments—the situation with the Southern Isles had finally been resolved 6 months after the insurrection of Hans.

With a heavy yawn, "At least that's over. I thought I'd never be rid of them." Stopping just outside her bedroom, a feeling of sweatiness and stiff bones gave her second thoughts.

"This won't do at all, now will it?" Turning counterclockwise from her living quarters so as to face the end of the hall, she eyed the showers and lurched in their general direction.

Upon entering, a welcoming of grandiloquent vaulted ceilings and a superfluous atrium stood to reason that this was the way of royal bathing. Late as it was, Elsa had come up with an interesting solution for low lighting some time ago. The top of the ceiling had been bored out and a fractal of ice greatly magnified whatever light there was.

The blonde stared to the left end, eyeing her personal shower. The door had been of her design—adorned with a gigantic keyhole only she could open. She skillfully conjured the key, opened the door and did away with it just as quick, its watery contents disappearing into one of the drains.

"Times like these would be better dealt with in my ice gown, but _no_ I had to dress up proper for these fools," she said exasperatedly, having to remove her clothing rather than dissipating it as she would her signature gown.

Hot water peppered her skin seconds later, eliciting a euphoric gasp from her. Realizing that she was quite tired, however, she took a seat over to the shower's side. The steaming water rained all about her.

She slowly rotated her arms and legs whilst feeling the dirtiness wash away. A content smile graced her face.

A few minutes more and she motioned to exit. After a little stretch and a yawn, she conjured a simple nightgown for herself, feeling a freshness as her showered body met her ice.

Having grabbed her clothes and stepped out of the showers into the hall, she made her way to bed.

*SLAM*

A resounding echo came from behind her. "Someone else was showering?" She postulated, somewhat surprised as she heard no indicator—save for the slam. Elsa quickly huddled to the wall, just out of the magnified moonlight's reach.

*Step, step, step*

"I wonder what kind of day Elsa had."

Hearing her name in such a way, the blonde froze as the one in question came into view. Her younger sister had forgot to bring clothes to change into, and, believing no one would see her this late, she opted to go without.

The redhead stopped just outside the showers, mere feet from Elsa. She finger combed her hair, allowing the elder to see her in a way she had only a few times before.

Slowly, thoughts from she knew not where crept into her mind. "Do it, Elsa," said a primal voice. That moment a dichotomy formed, leaving Elsa herself without control. All she knew was that her sister's wet bosom enticed her. Eyes dilating, her arm reached out as if to touch it—her fingers curled ever-so-slightly.

She snapped back to reality the instant before she crossed into the light.

"What the hell are you thinking, Elsa!?" Her mind chastised. She immediately retracted her arm, amazed at the division of her psyche.

Anna then slowly walked down the hall to her room, Elsa eyeing her all the way. Her clothesless expedition ended with a decisive shut of her bedroom door.

Precious air filled the elder sister's lungs, utterly flabbergasted as to what her id had just attempted.

"What the hell," she asked, imploring the depths of her mind. "Did that really just happen?" She looked to her outstretched hands in disbelief.

As if a woman on a mission, she strolled to her room with newfound energy, refusing to rest until reasoning with herself.

* * *

><p>"I mean I was tired, somewhat delirious, I could barely see her and.. oh why can't I explain myself!?" Her bed railing had begun accumulating dents as her fingers became ice-covered in frustration.<p>

Sighing, she brought her knees up to her face, slowly shifting her gaze to the early morning sun. It then dawned on her that she had lost all opportunity for restful sleep, courtesy of her wandering mind.

"There _has_ to be a reason," she whispered, desperately seeking absolution. Shock had her reeling even after several hours of intense thought—no matter the number of times she spent retracing the same points, no pungency did they lose.

"Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months," she said, moving to a more upright seating position as she named them. "_Years._" Her eyes widened as her life flashed before her eyes. "To think that thirteen of my 21 years on this Earth were spent in isolation."

Laying back on the bed, she figured in her head that more than half of her life had been spent away from Anna. Perhaps that would explain her lack of control.

"But there I go admitting I can't control it. That's not good enough!" she shouted. A small atmosphere of ice orbited her. "Where are you good-for-nothing parents when I need you? I just.. why?" A rumbling within her shook her very foundation. Cracks began forming, but then she implored her remembrances of her parents.

A gray room with eerie lighting; a space within her mind. Taken aback at her change of surroundings, she turned around to see just what she didn't want to see.. two unhappy faces. Taking a small step forward, she looked to her feet and noticed the expanse—the emptiness—of the space she was in. Filled only by them.

"Elsa?" She shot her face in the direction of her mother. "Conceal, don't feel," her father said.

"I haven't even said one word and you're throwing me _that_ of all things? The very thing that destroyed me?" Her mother and father locked arms, never allowing their gaze to leave Elsa.

Thinking that the projections perhaps had nothing more to say, she surmised that maybe their actions were symbolic. And then it hit her.

_They were together. She was alone._

In-between the pair and their daughter emanated a blinding light, ripping Elsa back to the real world.

She lost it all to incoherence. The waves of sadness within her found an exit through her eyes.

Her body writhed with each involuntary breath, causing her to roll her face over into the bed, somewhat lessening her cries. It played in her head over and over again. _Conceal, don't feel; conceal, don't feel; conceal don't feel._

The very mantra that had made her into a monster; the very thing that had kept her from bonding with anyone assaulted her vulnerable mind.

"Elsa?" asked a familiar voice.

The only thing that could have made the situation worse. And she didn't even lock the door.

* * *

><p><strong>This is the first <em>Frozen<em>-related thing I ever wrote, but I refrained from posting it because it needed to undergo some drafting. I have pre-written the first 3 chapters following this prologue, so they'll probably be up here in a few days. They, too, need to undergo some drafting, however.**

**Oh yeah, and this is my first attempt at writing something angst-y. Hopefully it won't be too unbearable lol But from what I've seen in other fics (*looks at The Sting of Summer's Winter and Tempest), mine should be tame by comparison.. probably...**

**About this: it's gonna be _long._ I'm dead serious. I won't give a word count estimate, but I've already got a good idea of the plot; there's no way it'll be short, that's for damn sure.  
>This fic iswill contain/takes place in, but is not limited to:  
>1. An extension of the canon universe (entirely of my own design)<br>2. Eventual Elsanna (with an emphasis on _eventual_)  
>3. Anna obtaining powers of some sort<br>4. A conspiratorial main conflict  
>5. And other stuff that I'm going to keep secret.. for now :p<strong>


	2. Chapter 1: Emergence

The turning of the door felt, to Elsa, as if her arm was being twisted. Without hesitation, the redheaded Anna entered the domain of her Queen.

She turned herself with the door to close it as noiselessly as she could. Elsa stared on, blank. She had no idea what to think. The wait was agony.

A smiling Anna made an about-face towards Elsa, and almost immediately started chattering. "Why so chilly, Elsa?" Her eyes slowly moved about the chamber, noticing a halo of cold throughout the room; but still centered around her sister. "Hey, could you lay off on the blizzard? Are you listening to me?" she said, somewhat annoyed.

Elsa heard her clearly. She unfurled herself, with a great deal more expression on her face, and dropped her icy, Saturn-esque ring.

"Now then, I figured I'd show you this first—I mean you're my sister, why wouldn't I?" She motioned to the top of her nightgown, hands pausing at the top button. Elsa's breath hitched.

_No, No, No, No, No!_

Anna glanced over at Elsa, her face smoothing out in concern. "Elsa? What's wrong?"

Gulping, Elsa could barely meet Anna's eyes.

Anna, however, took notice of something.

"You didn't sleep at all, did you?"

"W-wha? How did you—"

"Because I'm your sister, Elsa." Retracting her hands, she moved over to the bed where the blonde still sat awkwardly. Anna could clearly see her weariness, and took mental note of how she shifted ever-so-slightly away from her.

_Was it something I did? What did I say? Maybe it was how I burped at dinner last week? I mean, maybe Kristoff has rubbed off on me a little much, but—_

"Please, Elsa just tell me this time. You don't have to be afraid of me." She laid a hand on Elsa's shoulder, smoothing out the icy fabric. Elsa's gaze slowly shifted to her, her bleary eyes flitting about.

_Oh, please, not this again._

"You can't say it was a bad dream, because it's obvious you haven't slept." Elsa pouted, eyes moving slightly to the right, reluctant to speak.

Just as she was about to beg Elsa to say something, "Come to think of it, that's really what I came to talk to you about."

_What? _Elsa's mind whirred. _Then why were you—agh, what am I supposed to do?_

Her eyes shot up as her sister's body flinched upward, hearing a nasally whine along with it.

"I couldn't stand it Elsa!" Suddenly Anna's breath began coming out in hiccups. "Having to see mama and papa die right before my eyes!"

She then plunged to Elsa's chest, throwing her arms around her. The tears had already begun pouring.

Having the breath knocked from her at the sudden embrace, Elsa's own eyes began to well up, pulling Anna into her. Seconds later she began sobbing into Anna's hair.

_You're okay, Anna. I got you._

They shuddered together, teary gasps and grasping tightly to each other.

_Elsa! Please Elsa, you said you'd keep your promise—to never ever shut me out again. Just—j-just let it all out, Elsa._

The blonde scooped Anna's head up into the crook of her neck, cradling her gently but powerfully. She let out a thundering sob as she rocked her little sister side-to-side.

_Anna! Please Anna tell me! I'm here for you forever and always!_

Elsa squeezed hard at Anna's shoulder, pulling back to allow damp eyes meeting.

"I admit I didn't sleep," bracing her two hands on still-shuddering shoulders. _C'mon Anna, Look at me. _She cupped her little sister's chin, "But I am _never_ too tired to talk to you."

She stared into Anna's reddened eyes, rubbing small circles into her cheeks.

_Oh Anna. I love you. Oh, how I love you so._

Elsa gave a weak smile, to which Anna's features began quivering once again. "Shh," she cooed, silencing her cries with a warm hug.

They held each other contentedly for a while. The tempo of their breaths ebbed in and out of each other, listening to each other. As Anna felt her sister's breath ghosting over her neck, the world melted away. And, eventually, the sniffles ceased.

A finger reached in-between the draping of blonde curls, making contact with a cold collar bone. The owner caught a quick breath, though did not hold it. _It's just me and you Anna._

"Elsa?"

"Hm?"

Anna's hand splayed out against her sternum. Her thumb was against Elsa's jugular. _She's alive, _she thought as she felt her pulse.

Elsa's breath caught. "Anna, what is it?" She placed her hand atop Anna's. Anna gave her a smile, then got up to light a lamp. Elsa's tiredness was even more apparent.

"What did you always imagine, you know—" she paused, "when _they.. _died?" Her words barely squeaked out. She felt smaller than a grain of sand.

Elsa waved an arm, asking Anna to reclaim a spot on the bed. Her eyes were still wet from her earlier sobs. She didn't bother to wipe the teary stains away.

Anna sat next to her, and Elsa slinked an arm over her shoulder as she began to ponder what Anna had asked.

_Father Agdar; Mother Idun._

_Father, from what I had heard of others was a war hero; apparently had made some buddies in Germany and some other parts of Scandinavia. He was always too busy to tell me any of his stories, and I was always studying. Maybe Anna heard some of them from his own mouth. Mother only ever referred to him as a sweet family man. But.. all I ever saw was the person who put me behind the gates. Granted, he didn't understand my powers—well, neither do I, not completely—I nevertheless can't help but feel some discontent. His kingly word, coupled with my acquired isolationism, kept me from Anna. _

_Beyond that, he gave orders to my tutors and sent me to go see diplomats in other kingdoms occasionally. Not to mention the untold number of dukes and princes, among others, and—oh, I shudder at the thought—suitors. All of those people, he made me meet and hold a mask in front of my face. All for being crowned princess, and now Queen._

_That was my father. Agdar._

_Mother was always cheery. Where I rarely heard from father, save for instances with my powers, she would come to see me after nearly every meeting to see how I was holding up. I still remember how she'd ask for new ideas on things to eat at our weekly dinners. I'd always want a new kind of chocolate—something silly that made me think of Anna._

_And Anna. I would never not ask about her. Ever. Mother had begged me to go see her time and time again, but I swore to stay away. At the time it seemed like one of the only ways to honor father. But I was just being a child. I never knew what father wanted. Mother said that it was me and Anna's happiness, but with how pained her own—what I assumed to be—mask always was, I wonder how much he actually thought about us. I'm beginning to understand how difficult it is to hold face as a monarch. But such things are as they are._

_The last thing mother ever told me was to hold on to Anna at all costs. Everything up until that point had been about my well-being, even if it was about Anna. But then she just changed. Maybe she saw how fractured I truly was. Alas, I'll never know._

_That was my mother. Idun._

"Peaceful." She answered. "I always thought of them as dying in their sleep." _Liar. Why would you even say such a thing? You, who fight against everything?_

"Elsa, I—"

_What do you think, Anna?_

"—you're wrong." She sounded morbid; morose. "I saw them kicking and screaming." It sounded like she was reading something from one of her history lessons, which had never failed in depressing her. "They made their way back atop the ship, after it got turned over, with some others." She shook her head. "They begged to live, like I thought they would. But the storm didn't let up." Anna, who had been looking at Elsa the whole time; the girl who laughed and alighted the world; the girl who went headlong into anything—her eyes turned to glass. She knew that she couldn't save them. "When at last their time came." She took a breath only out of necessity. "They begged for death." Not even the flickering candlelight from the bed's shoulder reflected in her sight.

"I'm sorry, Elsa."

* * *

><p><em>Why can't I cry? Have my eyes dried up forever?<em>

"Anna." Her eyes dashed to her sister. "I might not have slept, but.. there was something."

_Elsa?_

The blonde's piercing blue eyes, still holding their color, at least as far as Anna could tell, told a tale all on their own.

"As you've already guessed, I haven't had a very good night." She paused awkwardly, and didn't move for several seconds. She righted herself, clearing her airway with an "Ahem. I saw our parents as well."

_Oh Elsa. Why couldn't I have been here earlier? Oh gods, what did you see, Elsa?_

The arm around Anna's shoulder clenched. Elsa sucked in the air through her teeth. "I just came to, and," she said, making obvious her shortness of breath, "they were just there."

"What was it like?" Anna asked. Her eyes had regained perhaps a tenth of their radiance.

"Gray." She ran her other hand along the purple bedspread, and then laid her palm out flat. "Empty."

Anna gasped.

"But they were there."

"What did they see? Or.. _did_ they say anything?"

Elsa gave her a humorless smile. _Where'd the light go?_

"Oh," Elsa chuckled mirthlessly, "they said something all right."

* * *

><p><em>Conceal, don't feel.<em>

Elsa laughed again. Her cheeks ripped back as her teeth were bared. Her eyes' profile narrowed to an angular slit. She cackled like a siren.

Anna, who had no reaction of which to speak, merely slinked up her hand to grasp Elsa's. She squeezed, but there was no reaction. Nothing. The redhead thought she was slipping into another world.

"Elsa?" She turned to eye her sister in the face. The pale one next to her said nothing, acknowledged nothing.

_Something's wrong, _Anna thought. _Very wrong._

Not knowing what else to do, she sat up and straddled Elsa, pinning her hands to the top of the bed. _What the hell's going on? She's just laughing like a madman and won't even look at me!_

It looked like she was staring down into the pit itself as she could only make out the pupils of her sister's deep blue eyes. _That's no laugh like I've ever heard from Elsa._

_Ever._

"Elsa!?" She hadn't yelled, but she needed a response. She needed to hear her voice to be sure things weren't going nuts.

The form beneath her stilled at once. She stopped convulsing, though her chest heaved for breath's sake. Her eyes reopened, though she kept that smile from the beyond. Anna still didn't see her. Those eyes were snuffed of light. _Where are you, Elsa?_

There was a creaky groan from beneath her. It sounded like the leviathan was waking from a long slumber. As her lungs filled with air, "Conceal, don't feel."

"W-what?" Anna immediately got up and off the blonde. "What did you just say?"

It had been squeaky, mouse-like in stature, but her words weaseled into her head.

_Anna? Is that you?_

She had no idea where she went. It felt, vaguely, like she was actually back in that gray hell.

_Am I even back?_

She looked around, noticing her hands were above her head. Anna was at the foot of the bed, standing.

"_Elsa?_"

_Of course it's Anna, you idiot._

"A—" she gasped, hand gripping her throat, "Anna." It felt like she hadn't drank in days.

Anna just looked on apprehensively. It had looked, rather convincingly, that Elsa was possessed. She took a shaky first step back on to the bed. Elsa looked at her cockeyed. "What happened, Anna?" Her voice cracked.

"What happened? Elsa, it's like you disappeared." She laid a hand on her cheek, bridging the gap. "Your eyes went dark."

"I'm sorry."

Anna grumbled. "From how you acted, you have no reason to be apologizing."

Elsa brought a hand up to Anna's. "I'm confused."

"It was about what mama and papa said."

_Oh._

She inhaled, no hissed, at that. Anna released her hand.

"I'm not going to not tell you, Anna."

Her little sister just nodded.

She took another, bigger breath.

"They told me that…."

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry." Anna said.<p>

"Don—"

"Shh," was Anna's reply. "I won't hear it."

Elsa gave up. She couldn't be even with Anna on everything.

They just sat next to each other, the crushed velvet of the blue bedspread felt heavenly beneath them. Elsa heard a yawn from next to her.

She leaned up on her elbow just enough to see that Anna was sitting at the edge of the bed. She turned back to face her, hand still in front of her face. Pulling it aside, "I should go. You know, sleep in my own bed."

Something in her head bubbled like the brew of a cauldron. _Good. That's good._

The thoughts trickled out and over, piling onto each other until they began to make totems. It looked like an unfolding epoch.

_It'll be all right. Just go with it. She'll never know. Know how disgus—_

_No! Enough!_

And then the scene evaporated; never existed.

Anna felt a pull at her wrist. "No, Anna."

Anna just gave her a simple look of question. Her older sister clarified; her eyes twinkled. "Please."

It seemed surreal. Almost too much so. But this had been exactly what she was vying for all those years. Unconditional love; that of a sibling? Wasn't that it?

She uncurled Elsa's hand and wrapped her fingers with hers. She looked to her once more.

"Queen's orders," Elsa managed in the fell grip of sleep.

Anna wasn't sure if she could've counted to ten before she was in the world of dreams.

* * *

><p><em>To be continued.<em>


	3. Chapter 2: I Barely Know You

_Her back arched and came back down rhythmically under her ministrations. She was focused entirely on her, and nothing else. The light around the room caught in her eyes like wayward sparks under her steely gaze._

_"You're mine, Anna."_

_The younger groaned, releasing a wail of agreement._

_"Elsa, please."_

* * *

><p>Sweaty. Restless. Out of breath.<p>

"Not," she threw the pillow off of her face, "good."

_You're filthy._

A drumbeat front the black depths. "Isn't this what you wanted?"

_Why are you doing this to me?_

"Ha! Don't flatter yourself, Elsa. I'm only here to make things clear to you."

_No._

"I'm only telling you—"

_Enough!_

"Like I said before, you're only delaying the inevitable."

_Please.. why.. why does it have to be her?_

"I'm only part of your mind, Elsa. You act like it's my choice. You think I'm toying with you?"

_N-no, I—_

"Pathetic."

_What do you expect!?_

"From someone who shut herself behind a door for thirteen years? Not much. But that's not my place."

_It's whatever place I give you._

"Wrong. I don't need you to give me a place, because you have no control over me."

_I know you're there, don't I?_

"Oh, Elsa—oh, you poor soul. Don't you realize that that should make you aware of how far gone you are?"

_W-what?_

"You said it yourself, that you should be able to put a piece of your mind in its place."

_I—_

"But you can't."

_What do you mean?_

"You'll find out, eventually."

And just as quick as it came, the voice of her id left her.

* * *

><p>The clock on her wall spoke volumes.<p>

It's late, she thought. Anna was nowhere to be seen. At this rate, Kai had probably alerted anyone of pertinence that she had taken the day off.

_I might need another._ She shook her head as she pulled the sheets back. _Or two._ The sheets would need to be changed.

_Is that why she left?_ It seemed, quite vaguely, humorous to her. Anna had probably assumed that it was nothing out of the ordinary, but that was _if_ she had noticed.

She changed out of her nightgown into something more fitting, and changed the sheets herself from the wares of her more-than-sizable walk-in closet. It was quarter after three in the afternoon. Had slept like a rock.

Where had Anna gone?

* * *

><p>"Perhaps in the courtyard? The chef told me that she asked for sandwiches." Kai said. He figured it was nothing abnormal.<p>

"Thank you, Kai." But before she left, "Was she with anyone?"

"No. I'm pretty sure I would've been told."

Elsa, rather than repeating herself, nodded and parted ways with the servant. She heard him formally take his leave as she rounded the hall down to the foot of the royal chambers. From there she took the door farthest right, out into the royal courtyard. The gardens here were extravagant, and usually well-kept by florists and the like. But it was winter, so there was little need.

"Anna?" She wasn't there. Not right around her, anyway. There were many trees she could've sat under. After looking around, she certainly wasn't outside.

Her gaze turned to the only other door besides the one leading to the greenhouse—the castle's private ballroom. _Maybe?_

Turning the door, she immediately was hit with memories of the chamber. She had first showed Anna her powers in here, many years ago. _And then you sh—oh, be quiet, mind!_

It was divided into sections by large, segmented sliding doors. As she stood in the very center, she remembered the speech that her father had given to the regency all those years ago. With all the changes he'd be making, he knew he couldn't do it all alone.

_"We're closing the gates. My daughter Elsa needs to be kept safe to ensure the safety of everyone else."_

Elsa, who had stayed in the corner of the room for the entire exchange, merely sat in silence. While she knew, to some extent, that she was of relevance, it would take many years until she understood just how much.

_"Anna can't know." _Those were his closing words. Other than his closest servants, and obviously Elsa, the regency had been given the sensitive information of Elsa's powers.

_Well now they all know._

She sighed as the memory passed through and out of her.

Her mind did a double-take as she could've swore she heard someone playing piano. Out here? In the private ballroom?

_Mr. Kleppf left for the winter, did he not?_ He was, to her knowledge, the only concert pianist that the staff had current record of. _Probably off to play other functions, _she thought.

Then who was this? She was now fully aware of the playing. _Mozart?_

She knew of no one else in the world who could play so beautifully. The young maestro had actually played there many years ago; made quite a spectacle, in fact.

Following her ears, the sound seemed to be coming from the right of the central area. She paused. "But that can't be. He died a few years ago." It had been just another tidbit through the grapevine, but one she remembered.

Taking the last few steps to the small door at the edge of the room, she noticed how much clearer the sounds were. _Incredible._ Upon opening the door, it was that feeling of realization a hundredfold. She could barely turn around to see who was playing, but when she did, her jaw went slack.

* * *

><p>"<em>Anna?<em>"

She could barely make out the top of her head over the open cover of the grand piano, how it moved when she played.

Elsa couldn't even move. The music came to a swell: the contrabass rattled the chamber, and then a virtuosic trail of arpeggios and rolled chords leading all the way to the twinkling heights of its range, concluding with a brilliant suspension.

_Magnificent._ She had meant to say it, but somehow couldn't. Her eyes glanced back over to her, and saw her breath in, preparing to play something else. "Ahem."

The shuffling from behind the massive instrument was expected. _Cute, _Elsa thought. She stood.

"Oh," she coughed, "i-it's you, Elsa."

The blonde, rather than responding right away, walked right over to her. "That was _amazing, _Anna." Anna rubbed the back of her neck. "Well, it all started about ten years ago." She blushed nervously.

Elsa hugged her. _Somehow, I don't feel as bad as I thought I would._

* * *

><p>"How do you do it, Anna?" asked Elsa. The two of them were alone in an empty ball room, with the sound of a grand piano filling its space. "I already told you, Elsa. I can't explain it. I just know that it's a D-flat." Anna stood away from her older sibling seated at the piano, her back turned so as not to see the keys.<p>

"Again," said Elsa. She struck a chord this time, seemingly convinced that Anna's perception would fail her. "E minor," said the redhead. Elsa looked at the exact placement of her hands, to retrace their movement just to be sure. "Well, you certainly have perfect pitch. From where, I wonder?" The elder pondered, perplexed as no one in their family had had musical affinity—until Anna.

She yawned where she stood. "Is it really _that easy _for you?" Elsa turned herself on the piano bench to face her sister's back. "Easy as pie," she said whilst stretching her arms overhead. Elsa slumped slightly, gasping as she felt a small pain in her back from sitting straight-up for so long.

"Well, I guess this proves that we all have gifts," she said. Anna, turning around, gave her best attempt at a nod. "If you can call it that—I'd much rather be able to conjure ice or look as pretty as you do." Elsa shook her head in amusement. "Is it really that funny?" Anna asked. "Moreover, Anna," said the queen, "how often do we catch ourselves in these snares where we're both thinking the exact same thing?"

Anna gave her a nonplussed look, as if to say _Huh? _"What I mean," Elsa continued, "is that we're both a little too polite towards each other." Anna snickered, and Elsa knew all too well what that meant. "Okay, so it's mostly me. I'll admit it."

"It's hard to remember that we're sisters sometimes, you know?" Elsa saw Anna's wistful expression. "Was it something I said?"

"That's just it, Elsa. We—especially you—take the time between us too seriously. I know your number one priority is to keep me safe. I've only heard it like a million times," she said, taking a breath, "but sometimes I could swear it's like we don't even know each other."

_Maybe she's right._

"Don't you think about it sometimes?" Anna said. Elsa looked up, giving her full attention. "Just how destructive those 13 years between us were?"

"All the time," her sister said, "and, well.. no, that's a lie." Anna looked far into her sister's eyes. "What is?" asked Anna. Elsa sighed, having to face the facts. "As much as I'd like to say that I don't let it get to me, it's just plain not true. I dare say that I probably took our separation worse than you."

Anna put her hands out in front of her, imagining that she was weighing their burdens. She was unable to discern a difference between them, resulting in a pair of shrugged shoulders.

"I get it, Anna." she said.

An awkward silence pervaded the room.

"Huh," said Anna, "this is supposed to be the part where I call you selfish." Elsa lifted her head once more. Anna continued, "But to tell you the truth, that one's getting old. It just seems like we look for excuses to antagonize ourselves—"

"—so that it makes our problems seem bigger. Am I right?" Elsa said. Anna smiled at her, but then it slowly faded. "We've gotten so good at pretending to know each other.. haven't we?" asked Anna. Elsa could only nod.

"Elsa?"

"Yes, Anna?"

"What were you thinking of when you saved me?" Elsa took a moment to remember amidst her syrupy memory of the past. Anna caught light of this, "You know, when I froze right in front of you?"

_How could I forget?_ She thought. "Why do you ask?" Anna walked over to her and knelt down in front of Elsa at the piano bench. "Because, Elsa," she began, taking in a deep breath, "it feels like the only time I ever _actually_ felt your embrace. It was so warm and, well, loving—like sisters should be."

"It's because.. because I can't lose you, Anna." Tears began welling up in her eyes, small gasps of air leaving her. Anna stood up to hug her sister, running a soothing hand over her. "You're," she managed in between teary gasps "all I've got left, Anna." Anna just cooed her to calmness, smoothing her golden hair.

"Anna?" Elsa asked. The younger wasn't sure what to think, hearing her muffled sister from under her chest. "Yes?" Replied Anna, still caressing Elsa's tresses. She noticed that Elsa hadn't actually cried.

"Can we be like this forever?" Something moved within Anna. _That's what I was gonna say._ "Part of me hopes so, but then again—it's just too good to be true. You're a queen. Things have to change." She paused. "As much as I'd like to keep you, eventually you'll have to marry, so our family can move on."

_Marry? I've barely thought on it. Well.. I just can't say it. Oh, Anna. If only you knew how much I really love you._

Anna laid her head upon her sister's, completely closing the distance between them. "And besides, now that you're safe," she whispered, "sorry." Elsa pulled her head out from under Anna. "About what, Nanna?" The redhead crinkled her nose. "Remember when I'd call you that?" Elsa giggled. "All those years ago." Anna put a hand on Elsa's, prompting her to look up. "Yeah, and sometimes I'd call you Ellie when I was _real_ little." she said.

"I was going to tell you that now that you're safe, I could let you go, be who you are." Anna said, looking deep into azure eyes. "But I just can't. You mean too much to me, Elsa. We have to be together." She took a seat next to Elsa on the bench, turning to face her. "All this time I believed that freeing you from your burden would do the same for me."

"Perhaps I'm not seeing the whole picture, but what have I really been freed from, Anna?" She looked down and away, collecting her thoughts. "I still have these powers," she said, looking to her hands, "and unfortunately that means I can still hurt you." She closed her eyes, holding her breath. "Anna, I really don't want to cry."

"Then don't." Elsa's eyes shot open, tender hands holding her face. "Anna?" She saw her sister staring longingly into her eyes—sparks flying amidst their otherworldly magnetism. "I love you so much, Elsa." She closed her eyes, moving her face closer to the blonde. Elsa took a breath, and leant downwards.

Anna's lips against her forehead felt like an angel's blessing, soothing her mind to its deepest depths. The warmth went from the crown of her head down into her center, spreading outwards to her extremities. It lingered in the tips of her toes, like the teeny crackles of a small fire.

For so many years she had known the cold couldn't bother her. Never would. The inner cold within her made sure of that. But warmth, warmth was something else completely. Heat was warm, of course, but that just wasn't the same kind of thing. No, this warmth was the one you get from the little butterflies in your stomach, or in anticipation of something wonderful. It really was different. Not alien; not strange, but different.

_It's okay, Elsa. I got you._ Anna thought. She nodded softly against Elsa allowing her lips to linger just a tad bit longer, then pulled away.

The door on the far side of the empty room flew open.

"Elsa? Anna?"

"Gerda?" Their heads whipped around to face their lifelong servant, and in doing so rotated their bodies as well, so as to not straddle the piano bench.

"A noble from Germany seeks audience with you two," she said, walking a fair distance over to them.

"Germany?" Elsa asked, turning to Anna. "Us?" asked Anna, doing the same.

"Normally I'd allow other things to take precedence, but this man seeks not politics, nor trade." Gerda paused, seeing as the two of them were together. "This man knew your father well—quite well, in fact."

Elsa stood up, fanning out the crinkles in her dress. "We'll introduce ourselves. Where waits our acquaintance?" She stole a quick glance at Anna, who was sporting a very subtle pout.

_I know that our parents are a sensitive subject, Anna, but perhaps this is what we need._

"In the courtyard. Last I saw he was marveling at your ice swan." Elsa nodded, then gave Anna a hand to pull her up.

"So, who is it?" asked Anna.

"Alex von Siegen."

The two faced each other agape, soon making haste to greet their company.

* * *

><p><strong>Hints getting dropped ftw<strong>


	4. Chapter 3: A Chance Meeting

"Cousin Alex!" Anna yelled, dashing across the courtyard to hug her long-lost relative.

"Anna!" he said, turning around just in time to shoulder the impact. Looking over her shoulder, he could clearly see her older sister who made a less hurried approach.

"You too, Elsa." Within feet from him, she smiled warmly and hugged him.

"How long has it been, Alex?" asked Anna. "5 years?" Placing a hairy hand up to his face, he pondered briefly. "Sounds about right. Maybe a little longer." He took a moment to look at the two of them together. "You two really have grown. Your father would be proud." They folded their hands bashfully, looking in opposite directions.

"You wanted audience with us, Alex?" Elsa asked. He gave her a sincere look. "Then by all means, welcome to your home away from home." Anna placed an arm on the blonde's shoulder. "Courtesy of us." They both bowed to him.

"Oh, come now, Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. Don't I owe it to you," he said, bowing in response. "I really am impressed with your work out here, by the way. The swan is beautiful, and the lesser sculptures are also quite nice." He paused. "I've heard from many that your powers have become accepted, following the Great Thaw, that is."

"True, true," said Anna, "her powers have given the people of Arendelle quite a symbol; quite a leader." Elsa laughed lightly. "You two are just too much."

"To the dining room?" asked the queen. They nodded, and into the castle they went.

* * *

><p>"So what has our former regent head been up to the past 5 years?" asked Elsa, lifting a forkful of meat.<p>

King Adgar told Arendelle's council long ago that in any event where himself, the queen, and the arch chancellor were absent that Alex von Siegen would head assume head of the regency.

"Things in my country have been going along well. News is still being circulated about your deeds as queen. I hear that you've finally resolved the situation with the Southern Isles?" he asked, not readily eating his stuffed potato.

"Yes, I put those matters to rest," she paused with nigh imperceptibility to ponder, "yesterday. That situation has finally reached its resolution." she said.

"Good to hear. They've been stirring up trouble for a while now, the Southern Isles." He wiped his hand with the royal purple silken table square. "King Dinesius II has since disowned him, I heard. Not sure what his 12 brothers think about that."

Anna, who had cleared her plate a few minutes ago, thought for a moment. "How'd you hear about Elsa settling those matters so quickly?"

He turned to her. "I'm sure your Queen would know." Elsa laughed lightly, causing him to smirk. "What," Anna asked, "something I don't know?" Elsa looked down to her lap. "Why not hear it from Alex?" Anna heard her clearly, and then turned her attention back to the man's warm, golden irises.

A servant entered the room with some wine. "Approach," he said, inclining his glass. The young girl filled it, and he nodded as she left. When the door was closed again, "I heard a piece of it on the way here, to the palace. I stopped at an inn at the edge of Arendelle, and heard about how the Southern Isles were no longer a worry." He saw Anna's nonplussed expression. "Were you expecting to hear something like "A magician never reveals his secrets?" Or something about hearing it through the grapevine?" He wiped his mouth of the burgundy wine, and then laughed. "No, Anna, nothing of that sort. Just heard it from your people."

Anna simply nodded, turning to Elsa.

He pushed back his chair slightly, gaze turning serious. He went to make sure the door was locked. "What is it, Alex?" Elsa asked, noticing the change in the air. She had vaguely wondered exactly why he had appeared, but would do nothing impolite. Still, she did wonder._ What brings him here._

"I'm sure you're wondering why I came here today," he said as he reclaimed his seat at the round table, "and the answer—" he reached into his pocket, "is this." Pulling out his hand, the large artifact nearly landed with a bang on the table. The two women gasped. Anna couldn't believe her eyes. "The Heart of Europe?" Elsa, too, thought it had to be a fake. "I say, what in the world is going on in Germany, Alex?"

The perfectly round, spherical red diamond had been spoken of only in legend. No one had ever seen it outside of the highest royalties and dignitaries. Legends told of its ability to awaken one's true power with only a touch, but no one had ever witnessed that, obviously.

"I can't say, Elsa. The investigative staff alerted me that this precious object was supposedly stolen."

Elsa looked at him hard, then softened as she encountered confusion. "I understand your concern, Cousin Alex, but why'd you bring it here?"

Anna, too, was interested. "What can we do to confirm your suspicions—that is, if you have any?"

He sighed, rolling the stone absentmindedly on the table. "I thought it was a strange idea at first, to bring it here." But then he looked to the two of them. "There was a certain piece of intel that I could not turn down, however." They just looked at him expectantly.

"Elsa has powers," he said as he looked at Anna.

"Well, yeah I know that. Everyone does." She paused. "Isn't that stone's legendary ability to awaken powers within someone?" He nodded. She allowed him to continue.

"The reason I brought it here, was because of that piece of intel I mentioned. There are many artifacts that can awaken powers within someone, some of which can boost abilities while being held." He picked up the grape-fruit sized diamond. "This one—assuming it truly is The Heart of Europe—is very special."

"In what way?" Elsa asked.

He continued. "It can offer something to those who already have powers." The Queen's eyes narrowed. "I'm not so sure about this, Alex."

"No, no, I mean no imposition upon you, your majesty—Elsa." It was obvious that he didn't want to sour the situation, not when he had come all the way here.

"You know, Alex," Anna said, "just how sensitive Elsa is about that. I'm not saying that it's not worth considering, but—" she grabbed Elsa's hand, "—we need to be careful." Elsa nodded to her. "I'm really not so sure about my powers, Alex. I can control them, of course. I don't freeze things randomly like I used to, and I can thaw things, but I'm not so sure I should do this."

Alex just looked at them bewildered. "What?" They had asked in unison.

"I just find it amazing how perceptive you two are." He put the object down in the center of the table. "I hadn't even said any of the details of my proposition and you two figured it all out right away."

He thought to himself how much they'd matured. He remembered Anna struggling to not run out on her lessons, while he observed similar episodes with Elsa who would become distraught when anything confused her. Seeing them together, and, well really _together_ after all this time was easing to his nerves.

"A stupid Queen wouldn't be of much use, would it." Elsa laughed. Anna retracted her hand form hers to laugh herself. Elsa poked her for doing so. "What can I expect?"

She had little of an inkling as to what to think. _Something to offer. Isn't that what he said?_

Alex folded his hands in front of him. "What they say, and this is from what little account there is to speak of, is that is grants greater control to those with powers. Garry the Green was once said to be able to erect an entire forest in his wake after being blessed by the Heart." He wiped his brow. "There was another, however—one with power over earth—who crushed himself while trying to create an artificial moon." The sisters' mouths turned to firm lines. He looked deep into the stone. It had what looked to be a star in its middle, but other than that it didn't seem mystical in any way. "What they mean by "further control" I'm not sure, but," he turned his stare to Elsa, "if we don't know whether this is the true stone or not.. terrible things could happen." He gulped.

"Pray tell, what things, Alex?" Elsa had never seen him so small in stature. _How much worse could it be than being badgered by Weselton for trade even after blatantly refusing, or putting up with all of that garbage with the Southern Isles?_

"They say that the Church is plotting something. Things have been circulating through all of Europe for a while now."

"What things?" Anna asked. Elsa was happy to be given a break.

Alex closed his eyes as he breathed deeply. When he opened them again, "Do you remember Admiral Westergard's son, Philip?"

Elsa took a sip of her wine, having long-since pushed her food aside. Said, "Yes, he was transferred to Denmark was he not?" Then she paused. _That's right._ "I heard he was killed in action."

"You heard right." He took a coin from his shirt pocket, twirling it between his fingers. "Notice I said _heard._"

"Meaning?" Anna asked. She looked like she could leap across the table with anticipation.

Alex put the coin back in his pocket. He put his elbows up on the table, resting his head into his hands. Anna was reminded of times when he would tell them stories in such a way.

"His Holiness." He cleared his throat.

"The pope," Elsa asked. She had the eyes of an owl.

"Yes," he said. "Why I brought Philip up earlier is because he suddenly reappeared."

"_What?_"

"Indeed. They never found his body, but it's been three years and now he shows up again. I take it I need not explain why this is so unnerving." They nodded.

He emptied his goblet. "Pope Henry brought him back."

Elsa started so hard that she stood up. She was breathing heavily.

_What does this mean? Is the pope a necromancer? The Church has the whole world at its command. What if—_

"_I_ don't believe that." His eyes softened, not dare wanting to alert the Queen. "I apologize, I should've said first that that was another bit of information I encountered." Elsa, still breathing heavily, nodded. Her eyes lost their blaze. Rather than sit back down in her chair, she sat at the edge of the table. The other two eyed her. "I'm fine," she said.

"Alright then." He resumed, eyes darkening somewhat. "As I was saying, Europe is in a fuss about this; wondering what the church is up to. In fact, the reason that the object before us was sought was to gain power to go against them. My head of resources says they were a faction from Finland who defected."

"What drove them out?"

"Someone contaminated their water and desecrated their crops, apparently. They thought it was the Church because of their persecution in the past. And so.. this happened." He looked to the gem once again.

Anna and Elsa turned their gazes to it, as well.

"Hear me, sisters of Arendelle; you must be careful. Things are not well in Europe, and there's no telling what could happen."

_What does this mean, Anna? _She looked towards her sister, who nodded.

Sighing with the weight of a warship, "I'll do it."

Alex had nearly forgotten why he had brought the thing. "Oh yes, there's that." He looked to her from the corner of his eye. "Are you sure?" She grabbed Anna's hand. "I'm sure I'm sure."

He just sat and watched as Elsa reached an arm over the table.

_Control. That's all it is, that's what Cousin Alex said._

Feeling the nerves firing at the tips of her fingers as she curled them, she stretched out her arm. When her palm made contact with the impossibly smooth stone.

_Nothing._

It was all right, it seemed.

"How will she know it worked?" Anna asked. She was pretty sure that if Elsa couldn't tell, she could.

Elsa closed her eyes, hearing them discuss something about signs when a thought entered her mind. _Singing. The choir that sang at my coronation. _It had been so random, so unexpected. _How'd they sound again?_

And then, behind them, in picture-perfect position, they began. A choir of the exact same men and women, made of snow, were singing, filling the room with rapturous sound. Anna and Alex looked on dumbfounded. Elsa evaporated the scene into thin air.

"I'd say that settles it."

The other two looked to her like bewildered deer. "Until just now Olaf was the only living thing I'd ever made, and just then I made a whole ice choir of men and women. There's no way I could've done that before."

Anna gave her a look that said "I knew you could do it."

Alex then turned his gaze to her. "And you, Anna?"

"M-me?"

He nodded. "You've seen me handling it this whole time, haven't you? Do I seem like a freak of nature?"

"Well no," she shook her head, "not at all, Alex."

"Then why don't you give it a try?"

It seemed funny, the way he had said it; as if it took a concerted effort to lay one's hand to a diamond. And a very pretty one, at that.

"Okay."

Elsa eyed her cautiously. She knew full-well that anything could happen. _Anna…_

The man and the Queen looked on as she scooped the Heart into her hand carefully. The air of expectancy couldn't be penetrated even by lightning.

"Elsa, Alex?"

They both got up to look over her shoulder.

"I just picked it up and the star in the middle started rotating."

* * *

><p><em>To be continued.<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Well, that's everything I've pre-written. Next chapter will be totally fresh.<strong>

**Until then.**


	5. Chapter 4: Between the Betwixt

****I will probably stick with this chapter length. And before I forget: Happy Thanksgiving and Happy 1st Birthday to Frozen.****

**I felt like I had yet to give this story some real context, so here you go. The stuff before this was pretty much just laying down groundwork. Now the ball can finally start rolling; and the angst is really coming to the forefront. Sorry if you got doubly reminded of an update. I posted this just moments ago without any line breaks, and I panicked because I knew how tacky it would look.**

**Contains mentions of Freudian theory, just so you know.**

**Without further adieu, here's the fifth entry.**

* * *

><p>She had forgotten to give her thanks to the servant who had drawn her bath. As the steam slowly rose from the frothy surface of her soak, so did her thoughts ebb and flow.<p>

Alex had later spoke about 4 others, besides the pope, giving her even more to ponder. She traced a hand lazily through the water, watching as it swished in a smooth pattern. But like the ripples that appeared as a disturbance in the bath, there was such a thing causing ripples in her own mind. _Anna._ What, if anything, could she have gained from the stone?

Elsa was already noticing that her so-called "further control" was definitely a reality. There had never been a bath in her memory where the temperature didn't dip down significantly._ But what _about _Anna?_

The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like staring in a cloudy mirror; but that was all it was—cloudy. Elsa had wanted to believe that she could see herself in Anna, but knew that their separation would take cynical delight in proving that a fallacy. _What am I to her? She's the light of day, and I'm just a.. a queen._ She couldn't help but think that, for Anna, there was more clarity. But how? What could she see (or perhaps what with could she see) that was of any radiance in Elsa? _I've been a horrible sister, and she just keeps coming back._ She sighed. _How could I deserve her?_

Agdar had done absolutely everything he could to ensure that Elsa would stay as far away from Anna as possible. And, as much as she hated to admit it, she could have done something about it. The separation was awful; insidious, and caused so much pain for the both of them. _But you just sat around moping about how it was so painful for _you. _Like hell, Elsa. _The routine had been stepped and retraced infinitely. She laughed almost silently. _You're pathetic._ She would've been killed by Hans had it not been for Anna. _That scoundrel nearly had it all and you were none the wiser, you sad little girl._

She had never come up with a name for the voice that berated her. Though, like any other, it was a part of her; and one that she knew very well. In the beginning the sounds appeared as nothing more than whispers, growing to callous snickers, and now the full-on berating scorn that she was so accustomed to. But it wasn't unwelcome. _I deserve it. All of it. _She sank lower into the tub. _And I don't deserve someone so precious as you, Anna. _Never were those words thought (or said for that matter) with the pretense that it would assuage her bottomless guilt. At times she even wanted it to sting worse, as if it were the only thing that could remind of her being alive.

_And yet here you are: a young Queen Elsa sat betwixt more decisions and propositions than you bother to count. _She had settled things with the Southern Isles and was about to go through more trade agreements. She did have an agenda, though some vague little thing; the notion of prosper. Her parents and tutors had only meant to imprint it upon her as if it would speak for itself. Observing other royal environments, that's how it always seemed to work. But it was never that easy. _Just like no one gets to see you as pathetic as you are, you never get to see them working their souls away in their own kingdom. _

It gave her a rather thick shell behind which to see everything else; one that she knew neither how or why to remove. _Or is it you that's the shell? What are you? _She couldn't think of anything other that which her title would suggest. _Queen._ She, herself, wasn't really.. anything.. was she? She had read books, charters, maps, wills and other various and sundry documents that had cluttered her mind. None of it ever mattered, simply stacking up and up on top of her fragile platform. But underneath all of that—absolutely all of it—was the one who, to her, the utterance of her name was like breathing. The one thing that had convinced her that it wasn't all pointless.

_What were you expecting all those years? _She had no idea, really. There had been no real impetus in her life other than the redhead. Royal duties had always been stuffy and in total juxtaposition to what she had seen herself doing in her life. _Wait, you have plans in your life? _She laughed. _What on this Earth makes you think you could plan anything for yourself?_ She was _Queen_ Elsa. She had people to rule; a country to see to, and countless obligations. _So what does this, then, say about you? You have plenty of time to yourself and yet you spend it moping to yourself and yourself alone._ _What can be said of you?_

Nothing, she thought. Even with Anna's proposed castle-doors-open-all-the-time policy, it seemed that her social scope had gone in no direction other than where it had always been, if not even farther in. _At least you heard her out, you damned fool. _And that she had done. It gave her a modicum of satisfaction. _At least you heard her for once. _But that wasn't as satisfying. She hadn't really done something that Anna couldn't have done herself. She honestly couldn't have cared if Anna had opened the gates. _After that absurd winter, you owe them _something. But it was now winter again. And the castle was similarly quiet. She knew that people would be huddling up to fire among each other, and sharing what precious resources were afforded to them. That she could not change. Maybe in time.

_But shouldn't you be worried about yourself? _It didn't seem as selfish as she figured it would, probably because it was so undeniably true. Every sidelong glance in the mirror unsettled her somewhat, as if she really were a child in the shoes of a monarch. The mornings spent doing herself up in front of her vanity were even more so. And here she was, sat in a bath for what her servant probably assumed was relaxation. But, in all truth, that never came to her of her own accord. _You don't know yourself. You only know how utterly pitiable you are. _

And it was true. It was the only way Elsa could go on in the way she always had—and would probably continue to do so. She needed some way to make herself understand how little she knew, lest she get a sizable ego. _And dear gods, what would the world need with an Ice Queen_ _who's got an inflated ego? Sounds like chaos to me._ A humorless jest, though some part of her thought it was vaguely funny. Of all the things she could've turned out as from the events of The Great Thaw, at least she wasn't a tyrant. _At least._

But Alex had explained those others with magic. "Sir Daynbjörd could lay waste to an entire landscape with his brute strength," he had said. At the moment, the others escaped her. _No matter._ She'd ask him later, she thought. _Even if you were a tyrant, there'd be others to stop you._ She felt the blackest hint of mirth as her hand guarded a giggle. "Oh, Elsa, even if you became a monster you still couldn't do it right," she said into her chamber. Her voice, surprisingly, didn't crack after a long period of disuse. She swallowed and then settled back into the tub. _Be careful not to speak in third-person, you imbecile. They'll have you deemed unfit to rule at that rate. _

It suddenly ran like a sneaky pitter patter on the forefront of her mind. _Other than your mother and father's honor, what reason do you have to rule? _It wasn't a suggestion; more a pondering. Of course she wouldn't step down from the throne. That'd be ridiculous. _But would it? _She didn't necessarily hate being queen. _It gives me something to do. _And just like that her thought from earlier seemed almost like a premonition. _Hence why you can plan, but to no avail. It gives you hope, does it not—that things can turn up?_ A pause. _But what things?_

_Everything?_

_Anna?_

And for the first time in her whole soak, her eyes shot open. Ice threatened to freeze the bath. She could feel it in her veins, but it nevertheless stayed at bay.

"You just had to bring her up." It was a deadpan, couldn't have been anything more. She realized how for some impassable, fundamental reasons that she could not and would not step down from the throne, she also could not _not _think about Anna. _Lucky you… But what about her? Have you ever really considered what she wanted? Have you ever even asked? _Some far, unused corner of her mind was trying to tell her that it was absurd to be completely and utterly jumping to conclusions like she was. It had, after all, only been half a year since she plunged the whole kingdom into an undeserved storm. But the thoughts nagged and nagged incessantly. _You only care about yourself._

"No." It bounced off the walls uselessly; like they were refuting her refusal. "No," she repeated with more conviction. This time the walls had more give to them, as if she had actually said it and not thought it.

_Isn't it the opposite? Well, isn't it? Wasn't she what tortured you all those long years? Planting all those thoughts in your head that things could be better while you hid away and festered?_

"No." She was nearly screaming. _You can't disprove it. And that's not even the worst part._ She could already feel cracks forming in her mind as the abyss' influence seeped outward. Her hands came up to clutch at her temples. Now her mind was splitting into—three parts? She could feel herself (or what she called herself), the voice in her head she faced all the time, and the third wasn't yet there. But in the space in her head, she saw a third chair. The room was bare, though expansive, as she sat with folded hands. To her left was her other, sat less demurely. She was smirking. And then came the drumbeat from the black depths.

* * *

><p>"No!" There was no leaving now. She had nowhere to go, no one to call to. Trapped in the walls of her mind.<p>

Slowly the form coalesced from a swirling of dust. It thickened, and then it came.

"Pleasure meeting you again, Elsa." And then the dust cleared. It was in the form of—

"You!" She pointed to him accusingly.

—Prince Hans of the Southern Isles.

He nodded evilly. "Yep." He pointed to himself. "Me."

"What the hell do you want?" she asked, boring a hole through him with her gaze.

"Why not ask yourself?" said her other, smiling at her.

She tried to think, but strangely found that she couldn't in this place. She'd have to stop cowering and just speak her mind.

"How can I?"

"How can you what," Hans asked.

She looked between both of them, and then resigned her angry demeanor.

"How am I supposed to figure out anything?" She felt a bop on her head from Other-Elsa. "Ow!"

"Are you really that stupid, Elsa? You think we're here _just _to make your life a living hell?"

"Maybe not you, but him—" she looked straight at him again; him and his unmistakable smirk, "—I'm not so sure about."

Hans put his hands in his lap. "So, Elsa, I presume you know who I am."

She put a fist to her face and thought against it briefly. "As in who do you _look like, _or who are you actually?"

Hans just laughed, eyes not cold and calculating for once. "I guess that answers that."

Elsa shook her head. "I guess."

"You guess, huh?" Other-Elsa was leering at her. "You do that a lot."

Elsa felt a twitch at her eye. Whether it was from tiredness or irritation, she didn't care. "So what if I do? And how do you know so much, anyway?" Hearing her own laugh outside of her body was very unnerving.

"There you go being stupid again." She pointed to her head. "I only know," and then pointed to Elsa, "what you know." She gave a side-long glance to the side-burned man at her side. "Him, though—or whatever he is—I have no idea." Elsa gave her a quizzical look. "What, you don't think we chat often, do you?" Other-Elsa laughed. "I can just imagine you thinking: _Oh, I bet they have secret meetings to conspire against me all the time._ Yeah, right." She laughed again, this time stifling it.

"Does it really sound that ridiculous?" Elsa asked.

"_Does it?_ Are you kidding me, Elsa?" This time, it came from Hans. Other-Elsa, who apparently thought she would be the one to say it, looked to Hans. "What?" he asked. The others didn't move their gazes, so he simply shrugged. "What is it?"

Elsa couldn't believe what was happening before her eyes. Not only was she talking to two completely difference parts of her own psyche, but they were having some weird sort of discussion together. And then that malevolent, base force from the deepest pit of her mind shows up in the form of _him_ and was almost trying to be friendly. She wrenched her eyes shut and shook her head forcefully. She opened her eyes.

Both Other-Elsa and Hans laughed haughtily, but not for long. "You must think you're dreaming, I take it?" Other-Elsa asked. Elsa sighed. "I wish."

"Something else you do a lot."

Elsa finally took a good look at her other self. She was wearing the exact opposite of what she was, both in terms of color and material. Where she was in a casual ice-blue ice dress, her other self was adorned with the heaviest burgundy dress she had ever seen. The skirts were so opulent she wondered if she could find her own feet.

Hans was wearing the exact same thing as he had at her coronation party. Had she been able to think, she would've remarked at how the thought of Anna just up and willing to marry him was behooving.

"When you've got people to serve and decrees to make, what can you say." she said in her defense.

"Oh, bosh." Elsa felt another bop on her head, this time just rubbing the spot absentmindedly as she looked wide-eyed at her other self. "You have no excuses."

"But don't I," she almost whined. "Doesn't it make sense that I'd have less time to think about myself with so much to tend to?"

Again, the other two laughed. "What in the world is so funny about that?"

Other-Elsa was about to speak when she noticed that Hans, too wanted to say something. They had a silent gesture of hands as to who should continue, after which Hans finally conceded to speak.

"It's just that," he let a small giggle escape, "you don't have any problems thinking logically." He gestured between the two of them. "If you did, you'd be talking to the ego."

Elsa's eyes rounded slightly and her hands were put onto her knees. "I'm confused."

Hans continued. "There are three parts to your mind." Elsa still looked hopelessly in the dark, but that didn't deter him. "The one that you hear from so very frequently," he poked a thumb over to her, "is the super-ego."

"The super.. ego?" Her hands came up from their place on her knees up to cross over her midsection.

"Yes." Other-Elsa steadied herself, sitting up straight and looking regal; much like Elsa would in the throne room. She cleared her throat. "The reason that you hear from me in such a deprecatory manner is because that is my purpose." She pointed to herself. "My job is to pursue perfection."

Elsa nodded her head mindlessly, imperceptibly. "Then why are you so.. different now?"

Other-Elsa almost seemed like she hadn't heard. "Am I not allowed to speak for myself? My word, Elsa, with an opportunity so scarce as this, and you're already selfishly wondering how it's all about you."

Elsa hissed, looking down to her lap. "Don't you dare say it." She looked up to see her other self eyeing her venomously. She wanted to cower away. "Don't you _dare _say it," she repeated.

Elsa shook her head. "But it _is_ all about—" *Slap*

Her head went fast to the side, face stinging. "I told you, Elsa." Other-Elsa grabbed her face, turning to look her dead in the eye; bright red irises to deep blue ones. "It's my job to make sure you don't say anything stupid." She let go of her face, but her gaze went nowhere. "If I can help it."

Elsa slowly moved back, hand coming up to rub the spot where she was struck. "But—"

"Dammit Elsa, no buts." Other-Elsa was in the throes of exasperation. "Can't you see how wrong you are?"

Elsa just sighed, letting her gaze turn to glass. She didn't expect a straight answer to anything she said, but this was totally different. "Humor me," she said humorlessly.

Other-Elsa chuckled. "That's my line."

"It's not funny.. me." She had taken a moment to search for the write term of address, since it would've seemed ridiculous to actually call her something like Other-Elsa. Such would be, perhaps, doubly referring to oneself in third-person.

"No," her other corrected, "what's not funny is you failing to realize that you already know what I mean."

"Except for the fact that I _don't_?" She thought she might get slapped again, but let her concern subside all the same.

"I'm not sure what sort of strange flattery you're putting on yourself, but you should know how tawdry that is."

"What?"

"Forgetting that you were the one who brought it up."

"Brought what up?"

Other-Elsa shook her hands as if wanting to strangle someone, but then turned her gaze back to the other. "We were like just communicating with each other, you know."

"When?"

She nearly spluttered at the one-word response. "Before _this,_" she gestured an arm all around the space, "happened."

Elsa's eyes widened. "That was you?"

Other-Elsa facepalmed, and then muttered into her hand, "And every other time, as well."

"Actually," the other one corrected, "that's not all true."

Elsa shifted her gaze to him and Other-Elsa took her face out of her hand.

Elsa's gaze became burnished under an intense heat. She had almost forgotten he was there. Almost.

"So, what are _you_?" she asked harshly.

Hans pulled his gloves harder onto his hands, making sure they were snug. He then turned up to the Queen. "I," he said, pointing to himself, "am your id." He took a second to let that sink in. "Or, in other words, your most basic and primal functions."

A voice boomed from around them, though it wasn't too loud. It came as an indistinct rumble, lacking any real definition. But the sound was unmistakable.

_"Do it, Elsa."_

_"You're only prolonging the inevitable."_

Elsa's eyes were as if ablaze. She shivered as the last reverberations of that disturbing voice died out in the white room. Breath came to her shakily.

"_You._" Her limbs began to feel heavy, as if they were being filled with ice. That didn't stop her from leaning over towards him as close as she could. Her gaze was fiery. "_It was you._" She shook her head quickly. "No," she laughed bitterly, "it _is _you." Her eyes rounded, making them appear as flaming orbs. "Isn't it?"

It really was more of a statement. Hans had held her gaze all the while, and still did. His visage betrayed none of what she had said, though he wasn't ready to give himself away.

"What are you referring to?" he asked off-handedly.

"Don't you patronize me, you bastard! You know damn well what I'm referring to."

"No I don't."

"_You lie._"

Hans looked at her as is he was dealing with a young child. "Tell me, are you an adult?"

Elsa gasped at that. She was on the verge of unleashing her fury on him. "What the hell are you talking about!?"

Hans chuckled coolly.

"Answer me!"

"By the gods above, Elsa, you expect answers and you can't even explain yourself!"

Elsa's face nearly cracked into pieces. "W-what did you just say?" The words almost got lost in the depths of her throat.

The deepest, most base part of her mind was acting _civil_? Oh, the poetry.

"Could you act like the Queen you are and state yourself?"

"Why should I?" The Queen now had her arms out to the sides in a contentious gesture. "You already know."

"That doesn't mean that you shouldn't be able to admit it to yourself," he said rather measuredly.

Elsa lost her breath in a huff. "But you're the one who gave me those thoughts. In what way is the fault mine?" She sat still for a few moments. Hans didn't stir. "Have you gone mute?"

Hans sighed and put an elbow down on his knee. He adopted an expression that vaguely looked like a smirk. "What thoughts, Elsa?"

Elsa choked, blocking the offending air with her hand. Once subsided, the flush on her face was clear as day. "Anna."

"And what about Anna?"

Elsa slapped a hand to her knee, barking, "_FUCKING HER!_"

She felt her scream rend the air as the admission flew. Shudders wracked her spine. A tear wrenched its way out of her eye. "Is that good enough, you—" she looked over him with intense scorn, "—id?" She wiped her face in a brisk motion.

Hans sat up perfectly straight. He looked at her with trained eyes; round eyes. "Yes, that's enough."

"When is it ever enough?" she asked contemptuously. Her eyes regained their fire. "You did this to me."

"No I didn't."

"_Yes you did!_ I heard you planting the seed in my mind, you.. agh!" She could no longer sit, so she threw the chair out from underneath her. She began pacing. Her head tilted sidelong to him as her feet continued on. "What did I do to deserve this?" Hans said nothing at first. "Well?" she asked.

"You're forgetting the piece that holds all of this together." He gestured to the three of them, and then only to her. "You."

Elsa huffed again, but had learned his ways from before. She said, "As you asked of me before—" she gave him a look of command, "explain yourself."

This time he did not hesitate. "I am only a part of you."

Seeing him respond so immediately, as if there was no other answer, did nothing but upset her fragile balance. Her eyes became perfectly round; pleading. "No." She shook her head.

"Yes," he replied.

She fell to the floor, resigned. Her knees came up to her chest. "No.. no, it can't be." The pieces were fitting together like a long-lost puzzle.

"But it is true, Elsa. The thoughts of which you mention were always there, always forming. I only made you aware of them."

"No, no, no!"

"You are a child."

"Now you look here, heathen." She was now right in his face, eyes red-hot. "I am a _Queen, _and you're telling me that it's not a problem for me to want to be," she fumbled for the words, "_romantically involved _with my _sister_!?"

Hans swatted her hand away. "I didn't say that." He took off one of his gloves. "I only said that the thoughts weren't mine alone; no, not my responsibility alone."

She brought back her chair to where it had once been. She sat down quickly. "Need I hear more of this?"

"Listen to yourself, Elsa." She turned to her other. "You're being a fool."

"You.. both of you just act like this isn't a burden." She held her hands out to the side, then bringing them down hastily, clattering against the wooden frame. "This could destroy me."

"Only if you're as weak as you tell yourself you are," Other-Elsa said, gaze unfaltering.

"I am weak. And a coward." She ran her nails along her arm, exposing her snowy skin.

"You're hopeless," Other-Elsa said as she shook her head.

Elsa laughed. The burbles from within tinged with a seething flare, erupting from a stretched visage revealing pearly teeth. "Oh, sorry you don't have to worry about harboring lust for your younger sibling. And having to be Queen, no less."

Other-Elsa just sighed and looked down. She looked as demure as Elsa had in the beginning.

"And you." Elsa looked over to the progenitorial spirit. "Why exactly do you appear as you do?" His eyes raised at the query. "Well?" He just shifted his arms about, as if not really believing that was what she wanted to ask. She, however, did know. "We've already established that I'm horribly at odds." She trained her gaze on no particular spot. "Even with myself."

"Mostly with yourself," Other-Elsa said.

"No," she said tersely.

"Pardon?"

"It's my turn to be honest, is it not? My problems are not entirely my own."

The one wearing red bore wide eyes, then nodded. She became motionless.

_I take my leave._

And with that, the body in the chair disappeared in a wispy display of dust and wind.

She now focused only on the other. "I repeat, why do you appear to me as _him_?" She felt his eyes challenging her to overcome the obstacle. So she did. "Prince Hans."

The presence removed his other glove, baring both his hands to her. "I have nothing to hide," he said with just the slightest mirth. "But, to answer you," he pointed at her, "my appearance unto you depends on where your deepest emotions are directed."

"Because I hate him so much."

"Yes," he said. "It's the strongest feeling you possess at this very moment." He rubbed a line down the backside of his hand. "Do you know why?"

"Because Hans tried to kill Anna."

"Bingo."

And at that very moment, having put that bit of truth out in the open, the air began to shift. _You have changed, Elsa. _Elsa thought mutely about having the voice back in her head, but didn't know what she meant. But the whirlwind right before her eyes gave her a strong hunch. Now that Hans was no longer her number one concern—

"_NO!_"

* * *

><p>"Elsa! Elsa!"<p>

She barely felt someone shaking her about in the tub as her mind came flying out of that place. Her eyes were stuck shut for the moment, however. She slowly became aware of the lights in the room desperately wanting to fill her vision. But the voice made her hesitate to open them. _Anna. Oh gods, Anna. What does the world want from me?_

"Wake up, Elsa!"

She felt her shoulders numbly as the shaking continued. _Something's better than nothing, perhaps._ She sent forth the will to the curtains of her eyes, prying them back slowly and deliberately. The light was almost blinding. And then there was something white in the foreground.

"_Elsa_!"

She had been pulled out of the tub and placed on the floor it would seem. As her pupils adjusted, she also noticed a bathrobe draped over her prone form. Right above her, however, was something of certain surprise. She wanted to say it, but it came out as a crackly gurgle. Pushing herself up, she felt an abrasive arm bracing her back as she forced up some water out of her airway. _I could've drowned. Not a pleasant thought._

Finally settling back down on the floor mat in the bathroom, she turned to the one beside her. Her eyes alighted at the fact of having not seen him for some while, but even more so at the surprise. "Olaf?" She immediately felt him wrap around her in a warm hug. "Of course it's me, Elsa. Who else were you thinking?" He gave her a probing stare, but didn't press it. _He's my creation, and besides, he's nice and innocent and.. Olaf. I can tell him, _she thought.

"Anna." Her eyes glossed over at the mention. She felt a hand on her shoulder. "You know she cares a lot about you." _So much. Too much._ "Yes, Olaf." In a motion, she waved her hand about absentmindedly, giving her an ice dress to cover her modesty. Discarding the bath robe, she thought. _He saved my life, didn't he? _Her eyes rounded at him as she stared. She kneeled down, hugging the snowman. "I love you, Olaf." The little snowman was her lifeline in many ways. He embodied the simpler times she had so much longed for and cherished. She could say whatever she wanted to him, and usually always meant it. She felt his arms wrap around her in a warm hug. "You, too, Elsa."

She retracted her arms and led him into her bedroom, seeing how his flurry left tiny snowflakes in his wake. Sitting at the edge of her bed, which Olaf jumped up on, she asked, "How'd you find me? I figured someone of the guard would notice that I was out of sorts, especially with the screaming and all." Olaf merely fixed her with a nonplussed expression. He said, "But Elsa, there was no screaming." She couldn't believe her ears. "Then how'd you find me?"

If Olaf looked perplexed before, then this was something new. "Because," he waved his arms around animatedly, finally pointing to her head, "we're, like, connected, you know." When she said nothing, he elaborated. "I know where you are." He crossed both arms across his heart. "Always," he said, smiling goofily.

Elsa, too, chuckled at the gesture. _What would I do without you, Olaf?_ She then remembered being in the bath. "How long did it take for me to come to?" Olaf noticed how serious she looked. He rocked his feet lightly against the edge of the bed. "Uh, like ten minutes or so." He felt a hand on his. "Really?" He nodded. "Yeah, really."

"Why'd you save me?" _Are you really that big of an idiot, Elsa!?_ The words had tumbled out thoughtlessly. Olaf's eyes softened. "Elsa." He met her hand with his other twig arm. "Why would you _ever_ say that?" He felt her arm slacken. "I-I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to say that." Elsa felt his grip tighten. "But you did." Elsa turned her head up to see him utterly crestfallen. _I really am sorry, Olaf. _

He waited a moment before finally breaking the silence. "Something's bothering you." She was taken aback at a distinct lack of his usual forwardness, and then she felt a twiggy hand on her chin. "Something's _really _bothering you." She couldn't deny it; It was no use.

"You're right, Olaf." She felt the arm retract; his eyes looked over her carefully in irregular glances. "Do," he started shakily, scooting closer to her on the bed, "do you wanna talk about it?" His eyes were indecipherable. But he was Olaf—caring, thoughtful and loving.

"Yes." The reply made his eyes light up. "But you have to promise to not tell _anyone._"

Her exceedingly serious tone did nothing to deter him. _So much like you, Olaf._ "Cross my heart," he said in a chipper tone. "You can tell me anything, Elsa." The Queen slowly looked at how his eyes held the warmth of the Sun in them. She sighed deeply. _I believe in you, Olaf. _She knew, for sure, that she had a confidante in the world; an innocent snowman who loves warm hugs, born of her childhood splendor. _I believe in you._ In her mind, she heard the creaking of a door, knowing what was behind it. _I need to get this out._ She shook her head. _No, I _will _get this out._

"Olaf." She took both his hands into her own. "I'm in love with someone." _Oh, so you just couldn't say it, could you? _She shushed away her thoughts, believing that she could get around to telling the whole truth somehow or another.

"Like how Anna loves Kristoff?" _Ouch._ She should've known that with the snowman's restored forwardness, such a reply was inevitable. _He knows us so well,_ she thought with some degree of fondness. But at the same time, he had just made getting the truth out a far more daring endeavor. "Yes, Olaf," she said as she gulped, her eyes crinkling at the edges, "like how Kristoff," another gulp, "loves Anna." She felt Olaf's hands stir. He was still looking her in the eye.

"You said it wrong." Her eyes widened, but she simply asked "How?" Olaf laughed. "It's simple. I said Anna then Kristoff." His eyes showed of mirth. "You said Kristoff then Anna," he gave in clarification; his head bobbing slightly in her direction. Elsa laughed herself. "Oh, so I did." She brought one of her hands up to her face, framing it shyly.

"You're blushing," Olaf said teasingly. Elsa stole away her other hand as well to fiddle with the ends of her braid. "So who is it?"

"Who's what?"

"You know, Elsa—who you're in love with."

"Oh." _Just quit torturing yourself, Elsa. He only wants to help. _She knew that her mind was right, even if she had a habit of screwing things up in one way or another. _You can do the right thing for once._ She still didn't know for absolute certain if she could, though. She needed, absolutely needed to be for her to continue. "So you _promise _you won't tell a soul?" She lacked her sheer expression from earlier, but maintained the air of seriousness. And, also like earlier, Olaf simply shrugged and said, "Of course!" He then took a breath. "So," he then wiggled his eyebrows, "who's the lucky one?" He poked her. "He's gotta look pretty awesome to woo someone like you."

He noticed how her shoulders squared at that one. "Is it a girl?"

_How in the? Is he really that innocent? _But she would finally listen to her thoughts. There was no use hiding it. _You'd just let it eat you from the inside-out at this rate._ She closed her eyes and nodded. _This is the right thing to do._ She didn't even give him room for doubt.

"It's Anna." The admission flew from her mouth like a spring dove, lifting tons from her shoulders. The breath that came afterwards was an easy one. "It's Anna," she repeated, and then she laughed. When she opened her eyes again, she saw Olaf donning a mask of wonder. "Was that not obvious enough?"

"No, no, it's not that." But then Olaf's brow crinkled. "But you two are sisters."

The words hit against her temples like a smith's hammer. The shell of her mind gave way to tiny fissures, snaking in tiny trails all over her being.

He added, "And she already loves Kristoff."

And then the smith reared back and struck again, deepening the cracks. It rustled out the thoughts inside, the ones festering. _How could you be so foolish? If Olaf got something from you, it certainly wasn't your nonexistent common sense. Queen Elsa in love with her younger sister. What kind of depraved author would pen such a story. _She regretted even opening her mouth.

"Olaf—" but then she noticed that Olaf was already talking, and wasn't about to give her any room to continue.

"But I don't see why she couldn't share."

_What? _She was laughing on the inside. _Share Anna? _Part of her found humor in the notion of even suggesting that she share her sister with anyone, but the other, more worldly part of her felt bitter at the idea of asking Anna to share herself. She didn't want to impose.

"How could I ask her to share, Olaf? She's a grown woman and can do as she pleases."

"Well, you should at least tell her." Elsa scoffed. "_Tell her,_" she sputtered out, hand coming up to wipe her mouth. She leered at the snowman before her. He shook his hands defensively. "Hey, you only said I couldn't tell; and, believe me, I won't." He gave her a smile. "But she really should know."

Elsa sighed. "I know."

Olaf noticed her resignation. "Will you ever tell her?"

_How could you do that to her? She does still at least pretend to respect you, even if only as Queen Elsa. And she loves you so much.. as a sister should. _A pause. _But that doesn't mean that you can just feel selfish and go asking for more when she's already got someone of her own. _

"I can't." One of her old mantras. _Just like old times…_

"Of course you can!"

"No Olaf, _I can't._" She sunk into herself, embracing only her cowardice. It was her only option. Olaf's expression fell out of favor. "Why not?" He didn't reach out to her. "What's stopping you?"

"Everything."

_You're only prolonging the inevitable._

"That's not true. I know Anna would understand." The look Elsa gave him was one of incredible wistfulness and perhaps even a little bit of hurt. "If only it were that simple, Olaf." She now found it ironic how Olaf had been the one to bring up the notion of two sisters being together as unusual, but now wanted to believe that nothing was actually wrong with it. _You have no such optimism._

"I think you're wrong," he said determinedly.

"I really wish I was." She stared at him defeatedly. She took a hand of his into hers. "If only you knew how cruel the world really is." She shook her head. "It's a good thing you don't, though."

"What's cruel about someone wanting to love you but being prevented because they're shut out?" He said almost hotly. She was taken aback. "That's what she's done all along." He added, "Apparently. Since you weren't really telling her how you felt." He took his hand back. "She doesn't deserve that."

Elsa just sat, realizing how right he was. She inhaled sharply. "I don't deserve her."

"Nuh-uh—"

"Elsa, are you in there? I haven't seen you all day."

They both froze, and the hairs on the back of Elsa's neck rose. The cracks in her mind deepened to new depths. Something in her snapped.

Her door flew open with a gust of snow, hurling Olaf at Anna. The girl fell to the other side of the hall. "Elsa—"

"You should leave."

"But—"

"_LEAVE!_"

Anna was now crying as she fled Elsa with Olaf in tow. He looked over his shoulder teary-eyed as they left her.

Slamming her door shut with her magic, she collapsed onto her bed.

"I don't want to hurt you," she cried.

_You're only prolonging the inevitable._

* * *

><p><em>To be continued.<em>


End file.
